Lenovo Vibe Z2 Pro combines 16MP camera, OIS and QHD screen

On its Google Plus page Lenovo has just announced what looks like, from a camera perspective, one of the most interesting smartphones of the year. According to the announcement the Vibe Z2 Pro captures images with a 16MP camera that features an optical image stabilization system. There is also a Dual-LED flash but unfortunately no information on sensor size or aperture has been released yet.

Camera functions include Auto Scene Detection and a so-called Ultra Night Mode but to many mobile photographers, Pro Mode, which allows for manual control over a range of shooting parameters, should look most appealing. Pro Mode's user interface design looks very similar to the manual setting dials in Nokia's excellent Camera App. The new device is also capable of 4K video recording.

The rest of the specification is worthy of a flagship device as well. The Vibe Z2 Pro comes with a 6-inch IPS screen that puts it flatly into phablet territory and the 2560 x 1440 pixel QHD resolution should make composing and viewing images a joy. Under the hood Android 4.4 is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 chipset with a 2.5GHz quad-core CPU and 3GB of RAM. The internal storage capacity is 32GB but unfortunately there is no microSD expansion. At 7.7mm the Lenovo is pretty slim and comes with very thin bezels. However, thanks to the large screen it was still possible to install a 4,000mAh battery.

The phone's rear panel is made out of brushed metal and at least in the released promotional materials looks like a true premium device. The launch is planned for September but, as usual with Lenovo devices, it is not clear if, when and at what price it will come to Western shores. Initially the Vibe Z2 Pro will be available in Russia among some other countries for approximately $834. Watch the video below for some more insight into its features and camera.

Comments

I had the Lenovo K900, their old flagship. Got it mostly for the camera, which was the first with a 1.8 lens I had seen.

The camera did OK in low light, but not as great as I expected.

It over-processed the images a lot. They looked great on the phone's screen, but shown on a 65" plasma they looked "fake" compared to similar shots taken with the iPhone 5.

Panorama did not do continuos measurements like the iPhone does, which meant that if different parts of the panorama were lit differently, part of the shot would be overexposed/underexposed dramatically.

Finally, the phone was buggy. Had poor reception: way too often I had to dial repeatedly before the call would go through (sometimes it did not at all), while there were no issues with other phones on the same network. Lenovo never updated the firmware in any meaningful way.

I would not buy another Lenovo phone for a while, regardless of the specs.

Don't have high hopes. Both the Z1 and Z2 were major disappointments camera-wise. (Remember the rumors about the large sensor before the Z1?) While Sony do manufacture some excellent cameras in all size categories (RX100Mk3, A6000, A7 etc.), cameraphones aren't their strength.

Yup, I know. However, if it at all happens, it won't in the near future (say, before the release of the iPhone 6 / Note 4 / Lumia 1030-whatever). That is, I'm pretty sure it's the best to pick a new smartphone from these three smartphones and purchase immediately without further waiting for a Sony cameraphone.

Assuming these three models have the best cameras running their respective OS'es, should one want to stick with the OS and no jump ship to another.

You and your 808, give it a rest already. If I want a big sensor I use my 36mp Sony A7r. If I want 4K I use my GH4. When I get a new smartphone in January 2015 I want something like this Lenovo or the LG G3. The 808 4" display has 360x640 pixels of resolution compared to this Lenovo 6" IPS display with 1440x2560 resolution.

You seem to have forgotten that not everybody needs the latest bells & whistles in a smartphone. I for example only use my 808 as a *phone* (and a camera). This makes it a *much* better choice than the LG G3 or any other smartphone - after all, it takes significantly better images when I don't have my high-quality Fujifilm X-E1 + 18-55 combo around.

It has been the case for the previous Note series is that the Note will be the "flagship" in terms of design and specs which will then be cascaded down to the "S" series later. Hence my hunch would be they will include something amazing on their lens which might include OIS, laser, etc otherwise their share will continue slumping ;)

I don't think Note 4 will have OIS. not even sure it will be 16mp nor to have dual flash. normally Notes follow S specs. but because S5 hasn't been a hot seller, it's possible that Sammy may up the specs on the Note 4 even more. I am waiting for it and I am hoping for a 6", but apparently it will be 5.7 or 5.8.

http://www.phonearena.com/news/Samsung-Galaxy-Note-4-rumor-round-up-specs-features-price-release-date-and-all-we-know-so-far_id57274"The choice to go with a lower-resolution sensor might have been made to allow for optical image stabilization gear to be implemented" just rumors. I forgot .. protected against dust and water damage.

i know, but that's the only exception so far, because the images are mostly downsampled to 8 or 5 MP, and look much better than full resolution. I'm wondering about cellphone photographers - no offence, but prime lenses are standart (no zoom, mostly) but onto the DSLR or DSLM, most guys prefer a zoom - which is from IQ mostly inferior compared to a good prime lens. I prefer primes always compared to zoom lenses.

As I observe people and society I am 100% convinced that the smartphone is the worst invention in the history of the world, bar NONE. It has turned a once observant and interactive society into pathetic, electronic addicted, anti-social zombies who walk around with their glazed empty eyes affixed to those crappy little LCD boxes glued to their hand, their thumb frantically pushing stupid little chicklets around the screen with the look of a meth addict on their face and mortal fear in their mind that they would accidently miss one non-essential, meaningless message from an emotionless fellow zombie doing the same thing. They roam the malls dressed in jackass attire of distasteful, offensive, or sports related t-shirts, baggy silk exercise pants, bright Nike clown shoes, tattoos, and all the while radiating themselves with dangerous levels of packet-data microwave energy. The corporate illuminati puppet-masters must be laughing their billionaire butts off. Other than that, nice phone!

I look at it this way.Many people with all their fancy gadgets under the illusion they're"connected," when in reality I feel they're really disconnected, walking around like zombies with their face looking down into their LCD, oblivious to everything around them. They're pathetic.

@Valiant Thor +10 for that - you're truly right. "The real walking dead".What's worst: the ppl feeling so important, talking all the wayvery loudly into public transport service - the badest are thesilly, dumb ppl which think they're so important & have nothingreally to talk btw, just shouting with implicit language into theirphones with so called buddies.

WOW, the whiners arise.Yes, people glazing at their LCDs in the street are disconnected from you - a stranger in the street/mall/etc., but they are connected with all their fiends and relatives miles and hundreds of miles away.Eat that:)

Let me guess, you don't own a smartphone? As you might imagine I always have a variety of them at my disposal...yet i refuse to behave like a teenage zombie and actually find them extremely useful in daily life, without much messaging at all.

Everyone: Thank you for the comments. My rant would have been more complete however I ran out of characters. Quick reply to the more shallow thinking repliers.

Yes, I have a cell phone. A Samsung flip phone (pay as you go) that is off most of the time and used only for essential communication. When I need to speak with friends and family, I mostly use the wired Polycom speaker phone in my office.

Do I have friends? Yes, I'm not a social outcast but a semi-retired pilot of 33 years with hundreds of fellow aviation acquaintances worldwide. I just don't need to know what isle at Wal-Mart those friends are shopping on every moment of the day.

Yes, it did happen with television, I agree. TV is the ultimate tool for controlling the thinking and opinions of the sheeple. Cell phones are a big second as the primary data mining tool for tracking, recording, storing, and monitoring the herd.

Personally I think this sort of pixel-density on a laptop is pretty much useless because you are further away from the screen. I have a 14-inch laptop with 1080p resolution and for me that's pretty much the maximum. Sometimes, when I read or write text I am already magnifying the window of whatever application I am using. The menu bars in Photoshop are also very small already...

Hi Lars,I think the main problem is the operating system (as Alphoid pointed out). for example, my phone has roughly the same resolution as my notebook, having a much smaller screen. The thing is android can natively cope with that and present you the information in a readable way.the same with Macbooks, with very high screen resolution, they found their way to be perfectly usable.In my eyes, this part should be solved by the OS. I don't think it is that easy (Microsoft has also to deal with programs developed 20+ years ago sometimes), but it is doable, as Apple proved.BTW, I use Linux, and it is also quite bad at dealing with high res screens.

They are more difficult to recycle, you can't swap batteries on the fly while shooting or using your smartphone. You can't simply buy a new battery once the first one starts to fade away in terms of charge.

Imagine a camera with a battery thats non-replacable: I assume hardly anybody would like to buy a sealed-battery camera.

Users accept non-replacable batteries as it usually goes hand in hand with a sealed, sturdy design which not only looks better, it is one less thing to break. Its a design choice of the manufacturer, and the consumer is free to choose the device they prefer. I do not want a user-replaceable battery on a phone, as I am not willing to accept having a battery compartment on it. Others wouldnt live with out it. Its great to have choices!

I wouldn't be interested in any smart phone if it didn't slip in to a shirt breast pocket so the width is the limiting factor. I have a Nokia 1020 which is perfect for this. For me the benefit of a camera phone vs a camera or iPad mini etc. is the ease of carrying it on me everywhere I go.